covered. islamic militants threatened to carry out more terror attacks in retaliation for the french campaign in mali accusing paris of a crusade. america bamma sets out his second term pledging to secure peace and democracy from africa to asia sparing concern over more intervention and if there is beyond american borders. and israel prepares for its own parliamentary

poll on tuesday we report on why many in the country a growing increasingly frustrated with the policies of the party that said to win the fight. on our side your company you are watching live from the russian capital. terrorists allegedly responsible for the deadly siege in algeria says france is carrying out a crusader campaign in the region thirty eight hostages were killed after militants captured a remote gas plant in retaliation for the ongoing french intervention in neighboring mali islamics claimed they wanted to negotiate the release of their captives but the offer was turned down with the algerian military deciding to storm the facility causing

a bloodbath more terror attacks have now been promised unless france and his campaign in west africa some of the hostage takers were militants from libya where paris helped islamised topple colonel gadhafi who had warned of an impending al qaeda surge in the region as part of reports which are very very. you wanted freedom you want an economic progress france great britain europe will always stand by the libyan people of course. but a regional crisis probably wasn't what this year sarkozy anticipated when he was spearheading the military operation to topple moammar gadhafi although the former french president can't say that he hadn't been warned personally i play a significant role in establishing peace in those regions of africa should the situation in libya be unstable al-qaeda will establish its rule a lot and will return and libya will be another afghanistan the terrorists will

flood to europe cut to paris and almost two years later mark is out these words could well be ringing in the areas of need what i saw was the successor francois hollande having just sent troops to mali france's new leader could well be learning that every action has a reaction. secu so not only do the rains intervention in libya not help the democratic process which is what they said they were after but it is that simply opened up the floodgates for weapons stockpiles in fighters to leave the country and go solve a lot of this is new more to mali where the recently deployed french military where of course it is stunned by the technologically advanced weapons that are in the hands of their adversaries nobody seems to think that perhaps organized groups come from somewhere other than mali it seems they came across the nearby libyan border libya is as i say central to all this problem because all the plot of weapons it's been produced by the collapse of the darfur region but also by the complete failure

to establish any kind of real state you have essentially all talk rating in different parts of libya and you have across much of this hour a situation where people have arguments where very little civic sense so bribery and corruption or grabs is common place gadhafi was bitter opponent all right it was ahmed groups whatever his faults and they now have the ability to use the chaos in libya to provide the basis the first effects for immediate hostage crisis in algeria said to be in retaliation for the french offensive in mali has already claimed the lives of dozens of civilians taken captive when i'm frightened of terrorism this is always been a problem for france whether it's chirac or sarkozy upward it's just i'm french i was born here and my culture is french origins are there and i always there is no other country telling me. you know we're scared of anything that threatens us.

france's global allies are showing signs of being sucked into the mali conflict british prime minister david cameron has already acknowledged that factoring radical insurgency in the region could take decades rather than months and all this so that france can remedy the knock on effects from its libyan intervention. r t paris. well earlier my colleague lisa now we spoke with the former u.k. ambassador to syria graeme hand he says the killing of several british hostages isn't enough to dissuade london from helping the french intervention to united kingdom will continue to support the french intervention i imagine that the british government will also want to support our friends in algeria in any way that they might ask us to. david cameron has said that the fight against islamic terrorists in north africa could take decades can britain really afford to get involved like

they did in afghanistan which i should mention of course started out with george bush saying that we would be in and out. well politicians tend always to say we'll be in and then we'll be in sync mr cameron knows that this will take time i don't imagine that he is thinking of committing british ground troops to north africa but there's a lot we can do in terms of intelligence technology logistics i think it does have to be done the question really is how can we afford not to. there was the thought that france went in because of possible uranium resources there what is britain's interests then. well i think britain's interest is in having stability on the if you like the southern florida flank of nato just across the mediterranean from from western europe. i don't accept these conspiracy theories about minerals i think

it's really about knowing that we're we have we have stable neighbors stable neighbors but at the same time britain openly backs rebels who are known to have sort of attachments to al qaeda and other is islamist groups there so where then is the consistency. sort of what rebel groups are those in syria. yes yes well if i say reading anything it was more of a geo political in terms of security and not resources so where then why yes in syria no in syria and mali well i think it's a different story this is not. an al-qaeda linked islam a stop arising in syria it's ordinary people who want a different life they want to be rid of a tyrant. in charge of them and this will solve itself

apparently without any intervention from the outside i think the story in mali is completely different this is foreign intervention by the al-qaeda linked terrorists themselves this is not just mali i'm striving to change the government. the political analysts john look clinton says western countries support islamist when he's seen a geo political interest to do you say. i greatly enjoyed the ambassador's. discomfort when you put him but question i mean he doesn't have an answer and the western governments do not have an answer to the question of it which is to say why do we support islamic or islamist rebels in syria and yet send troops into crushes in the midst rebels in mali there is no way of squaring the circle these are simply double standards for the by the same token why do we support last year the secession of south sudan but we suddenly send in troops to prevent the

secession of north mali these are political decision we are taking political decisions on the basis of our political vision and our friends and enemies and that's the reason why we do one thing in syria and the other thing in mali and as for encouraging stability i mean that really does take the cooking to say that you know we have practically the whole of the middle east including north africa in turmoil we have supported we the west have supported the great uprisings of the arab spring only to find that they the regimes they have produced have an important islamic element these are conundrums which the west has not sold them is not sold and it is on the contrary making matters worse now at his inauguration in washington president barack obama has pledged to promote democracy worldwide for more on what this means we're joined live from d.c. by kenny chickie and candy thanks for joining issue where they're following events

effectively what were the key points he was making. well in his inaugural speech president obama sort of responded to those who have been wondering whether the u.s. will continue on that track of interventions here's what it takes what he said will renew those institutions that extend our capacity to manage crisis abroad for no one has a greater stake in a peaceful world than its most powerful nation. we will support democracy from asia to africa from the americas to the middle east because our interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom. so from asia to africa or from the americas to the middle east that pretty much covers the whole world so we could potentially see interventions by the united states pretty much anywhere and one wonders how different it is from george w. bush's speech is about advancing freedom and democracy in the world which the u.s.

has been doing mainly with bombs but president obama's remarks do not come as a surprise to those who've been following his policies in the last four years which included the u.s. in gauging in undeclared war so through its targeted assassinations program in different countries and the u.s. making a so-called pivot to asia expanding its military prepays this presence in asia pacific to counter the rising influence of china's it's very interesting i've been listening to the base all kinds of panels and national media here about the future of u.s. foreign policy it's about what the president should be or will be doing and there's a general sense that of course the u.s. will be intervening wherever it can so that's the idea that's being perpetuated it's not even a matter of debate really president obama signs off on a kill list every week and sets up new drone bases overseas and somehow his foreign policies are not perceived as aggressive and do not steer a debate here at home there's also this phony argument that you hear every now and

then that president obama is not half as aggressive as george w. bush would have been or mitt romney would have been and it seems there is a notion that as long as there are no u.s. boots on the ground as long as wars are fought either with a remote control or through proxies it's a success and it's not perceived as aggressive again president obama's hit and run style libya intervention it was touted as a success then the u.s. ambassador died and it became more difficult to brag about libya and ignored the mess that we view it turned into so it very much seems like it's not about the president's actions it's about perceptions president obama talks beautifully and smiles beautiful we have to be aggressive so perceptions are. the reality of politics here. again thank you very much for your thoughts some interesting stuff there scan each again from washington they say. my former us senate foreign policy adviser james just trust told us how

a bomb has so far failed to step away from the controversial global strategies of the bush era i don't think they're much better but they're not much worse either i think the main thing that characterized mr obama's first term was continuity with the bush legacy most notably for example in the intervention in libya i think the real question is is will there be a shift in his second term in line with what he said today for example will we back away from potential confrontation or in military involvement in syria will we back away from confrontation with iran will we withdraw all of the missile deployments system on russia's western borders there are things that he can do to radically shift it is second term away from that bush legacy. now israeli citizens will vote for that leaders on cheese day old be it without much enthusiasm just a minute we will tell you why many of them feel betrayed by their prime minister

he's poised to win the pot. plus hungry for profits why investment bank is being blamed for forcing up the prices the details coming up just after a quick break. well. science technology innovations all the latest developments from around russia we've got this huge you're covered. there are twelve cities in the united states in which half of the people with hiv aids lives with. over sixty two percent of patients are diagnosed with aids this is a problem that frankly is substantially preventable it was like the big elephant in the room and nobody wanted to talk about it there were really good public health campaigns if people were really focused on this problem you certainly should be

able have a lot less h.i.v. a lot less human suffering. least be told language. programs and documentaries in arabic it's all here on. reporting from the world talks about six of the c.r.t.c. interviewers intriguing stories for you to. see in trying. to find out more visit our big teeth. and i welcome back with a general election looming in israel polls predict there will be little change to the makeup of the country's parliament for cost promising the return of prime minister benjamin netanyahu is right wing likud party leaving many voters apathetic and disillusioned. as this report. the countdown has begun but

instead of scanning the papers to brush up on who's saying what in the final hours before his way he's head to the polls. is searching for an apartment the twenty eight year old is desperate to move out of his parents' home but times are tough and he blames the government right i'm not going to vote i see who are the candidates and there's no one standing who represents me or who can change the general mood in the country with the recent political justing that's all candidates move from one party to another in joost even more pessimism in people like. you have lost trust in israeli politicians the union between bibi netanyahu and his foreign minister avigdor lieberman into the them and government the return of c.p. leave me form opposition leader back into the fray just a few months after announcing her time and only frustrated and already eviction where we public many israelis don't believe that the present politicians and parties. have any really new solutions to the big problems facing israel

security peace spirit economic issues but among all the uncertainty one thing is certain for the disenchanted voters and it can magnify also feel like the outcome is pre-determined everyone knows not a new yorker is going to win or the core them or the apathy based on the belief that netanyahu will almost certainly when has made experts to worry about the state of his way to democracy. there are some populations designing the israeli society if you take a certain sort of. presenters that turns out to vote is very high it's above eighty on the other hand when you look at the middle class the youth and the arabs the presenters is around sixty. and those figures only help netanyahu and his allies of course there are parties who are ready to oppose the government's policies one of their merits boasts that a vote for them is a secure vote against netanyahu and a leadership that will destroy israel first of all are is

a lation the war will continue. there will be no worse solution to the palestinian problem in the economic and social gaps between rich and poor will get to march wider and deeper but merits is expected to win only around five percent of the votes in a record field of fifty four parties that are running in these elections netanyahu is party is expected to get only about a quarter of the seats in the parliament but with other political forces being shattered into rival factions this is still going to be enough for him to continue in power the coalition effort on yahoo is expected to build would have a very slim majority but it would still give him the mandate he needs to map out this country's next four years but the paradox of the selection is that the candidate sick to when is not particularly liked by most of the country policy or r.t. to level of. the mayor or an a senior correspondent and columnist for the hertz newspaper

believes prime minister netanyahu could lose a lot of public support if you refuse to listen to washington's concerns. there is no initiative coming from either israel or outside of it however once president obama has just been inaugurated for his second term once he comes out with a major diplomatic initiative with secretary of state john kerry who is for such an initiative then most of the israeli public may turn against against his own prime minister if he tries to to a paedo such an initiative the silent majority unused once a solution and the only possible the only practical solution is the two state solution so we may yet see within the next year or two some breakthrough towards such a solution as president obama if at all is considered pro israeli even though he

has entertained it and you know the two are not synonymous netanyahu is not israel he is the current prime minister but his policy views of either palestinians and because of you the united states the major benefit or perhaps the only benefit to israel has this policy is not supported by the majority of israelis so if we are going to see a clash between attorney and obama then i will not be supported by many people in israel and then again you may see new elections early elections and we will be closely watching the israeli elections all day on cheese day bringing the therapy coverage as well as need depth exploration of the issue of israel seconds with a twist. i'm here with some investors from england. over here to cern your local buy board in this area in the north georgia. world. look to the state solution. to.

all of the. german chancellor angela merkel this coalition has suffered a blow ahead of the parliamentary election related the share they've been defeated in a cave regional vote losing by one seat in lower saxony the disappointing result potentially puts merkel in a bun rable position ahead of september's general election in which she seeks to win a third term in office artie's peter all of a now reports on the fragile support for the german leader both at home and abroad . it's the thirteenth setback in local elections that angle merkel's christian democrat party and their coalition partners the free democrats have suffered it's also more importantly the fifth the fifth state government which they've lost to the social democrats since two thousand and nine this vote in lower saxony which is

the fourth most populous state in germany it seemed very much as a bellwether of opinion and it was incredibly tight well it was by one seat and what it does mean though even by the smallest of margins the social democrats well they smell blood heading into the general election their candidate for the chancellorship steinbach said this well this shows that a change of government and power is possible this year what's interesting when you look at this particular particular local election is the eurozone debt crisis really didn't come into it this was a local election where people were voting on local issues now it's in that area where mrs merkel is starting to show some weaknesses as it were and her christian democratic party and their coalition partners but she still has this personal appeal as the leader because of what she's done for the eurozone crisis but of course that isn't mirrored when you look around the rest of europe particularly in

countries like greece where we've seen burned in effigy and even compared to adult hitler because the greek people they see angela merkel as the main person behind the austerity that they're having to live through so her popularity abroad personally isn't particularly great when it comes to the eurozone crisis however germans are happy with the way that she's managed this crisis and managed germany's economy throughout it but as i say it's going to come down to whether she can convince the german people that she's the right person to manage german interests at home as well as those abroad whether she can win one third term towards the end of this year. a quick look now at other world news and the trial of five indian men for the brutal rape and murder of a woman last month begins in delhi this big day could face the death penalty for the six the suspect he's under age will be tried in a juvenile court in december the twenty three year old female and their male friend boarded a bus where they were attacked by six men in an ordeal lasting several hours the

victims were dumped by the side of a road you tax part of nationwide protest over widespread violence against women in india. a taliban raid on the cabal traffic police headquarters has left three police officers and at least five terrorists dead the battle between insurgents and security forces lasted over nine hours it's the second raid in the afghan capital in the past week and comes amid attempts by the u.s. and afghan governments to try and engage taliban in peace talks. venezuela's charismatic leader hugo chavez will soon return to rule his country says bice president nicolas maduro according to mature over the president is recovering well and gaining strength following a severe a spirit dream faction after cancer surgery last few burnell of the long serving leader has yet to be sworn in for his the as his inauguration date was disposed indefinitely key to his extensive health problems.

good times at goldman sachs stuff the investment giants are reported to be getting a significant salary boost but a lot of that money has been made on the back of surging food prices which are leaving many around the world starving and earlier my colleague anita now we spoke to artie's alexy here a show of ski who's been looking into the matter. this debate has been going on for many years now but this latest controversy is definitely making this discussion even more fueled now the employees of goldman sachs investment bank are in for some happy times their salaries have reportedly been raised and almost half a million dollars worth of annual bonuses are to be paid out all because in twenty twelve the company made about four hundred million dollars from investing its clients' money in a range of products known as soft commodities such as maize to coffee and sugar but what's good for bankers is damaging the global food situation say experts and many claim major investment players are contributing to

a global food emergency the united nations warned that the world could be on the brink of a major hunger crisis this year after poor harvests in the united states and ukraine food prices already surged last summer with cereals hitting a record high in september last year food cost sixteen percent higher than in twenty ten and more than twice as expensive as a decade ago even after adjusting for inflation with almost a billion people already starving such a forecast could make things catastrophic worse and the latest controversy with goldman sachs has once again we ignited the debate on what actually stands behind the hike in food prices organizations like food watch say they are not the only ones financial players around the world to bear a large part of blame by investing astronomical sums of money into foodstuffs and speculating on the prices to make big profits in the last three years alone speculators have poured in as an extra hundred billion u.s. dollars into the sector and that is expected of driving prices even higher investment and central banks deny this saying futures trading is important for

farmers and that their bets have no effect yet the prices. bear scant resemblance to the natural growth and demand for food moreover there are already creating grounds for instability sparking protests and demonstrations for instance in several african countries including working a fast so in senegal bakers went on strike recently because of an eighty percent increase in the price of wheat so if this trend continues people will be unable to afford basic staple foods and if further harvest suffer too it's not hard to imagine the consequences for the world's hungry. you're watching our take it to you how he would listen in just a couple of minutes all business team brings you the latest developments coming out of the annual world economic forum in davos.

you know sometimes you see a story and it seems so you think you understand it and then you glimpse something else you hear or see some other part of it and realize that everything you thought you knew you don't know i'm tom harpur welcome to the big picture. more news today violence is once again flared up. these are the images the world

has been seeing from the streets of canada. giant corporations are the day. hello and welcome to the business program this week my colleague kitty pilgrim and i will be hosting from a beautiful swiss skiing resort of davros home of the annual world economic forum and less than two days the world's most powerful decision makers including fifty presidents and prime ministers and hundreds of chairman and c.e.o. of global companies will descend on this other wise pretty quiet tone to talk about global economies most painful wounds and of course some of the ways they hope to help heal so let's rewind to katie's journey to doubt.